The National Academy of Sciences will host the 7th Annual Sackler Lecture, "Nanoscience and Nanotechnology: A Portrait in Early Adolescence," delivered by George Whitesides at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, April 10. Dr. Whitesides is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering, and is the chair of the Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy. He was awarded the National Medal of Science in 1998 and is currently the Woodford L. and Ann A. Flowers University Professor at Harvard University.

The public is cordially invited to attend this lecture, which is free. It will take place in the NAS auditorium; a poster session and reception precede the lecture from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. RSVP online at http://www.nasonline.org/SACKLER_Lecture_2007.

Dr. Whitesides' lecture is presented in connection with the Sackler Colloquium Nanomaterials in Biology and Medicine: Promises and Perils, which will take place on April 10-11. At this event researchers will discuss new ways to create functional nanomaterials in biology, challenges involved in bringing these technologies to the consumer, and related societal and ethical concerns. A program, list of speakers, and registration information for the 2-day colloquium are available online at www.nasonline.org/Sackler_nanoprobes.

There has been an explosive development in materials development which uses nanoscale materials to probe biological processes and diagnose medical conditions (such as tumor detection). There are unique aspects of nanoscale materials which allow them to preferentially penetrate and be retained by biological cells and tissue and there have been developments in new ways to detect and image and nanomaterials in cells and biological tissue. Further, the size scale of nanoprobes will allow us to build complexity into nanoprobes which allow them to be multi-functional, with both diagnostic and drug delivery. However, we must also be aware that these nanomaterials can have drastically different behavior in biological tissue than larger scale materials of exactly the same composition, so issues of societal and ethical outcomes must also be considered. The colloquium will be structured to address graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, directors of public granting agencies, and policy makers.

National Academy of Sciences Auditorium
1. Take Metro's Orange or BLue Line to the Foggy Bottom-GWU station.
2. Turn RIGHT on to 23rd Street N.W. when you exit the station.
3. Walk SOUTH on 23rd Street N.W. for approximately 7 blocks.
4. Turn LEFT on to C Street N.W. (after the State Department).
5. Cross 22nd Street N.W. The next building on your right will be 2100 C St. N.W.

sackler@nas.edu